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The Colorado Springs Open
From Spin Magazine, Vol. 3, No. 9, November 1985 (Cover article)
Insook's Back - And Winning Again
Diana Gee, Spectators' Favorite
by Thomas Wintrich
Insook Bhushan, Colorado's best player and five-time American women's champion, offered little reason to doubt she's still the USA's premiere woman despite a two-year layoff. Nevertheless, she doesn't look like the Insook of the past, but it's her physical appearance that has changed, not her game.
After giving birth to her second son nine months ago, Insook underwent oral surgery to correct an overbite problem that had plagued her with headaches. She had teeth removed, her jaw reconstructured and her mough wired shut for six months. The end result is a "new look" for Insook but aside from a temporary weight loss, it doesn't extend beyond her face.
At the table, it's the same Insook we've long admired with the exception that her physical stamina is noticeably lower than the last time she competed. Undoubtedly, that's a temporary situation and it wasn't enough to stop her from winning the 1985 Colorado Springs Open with but a single-game loss.
Mark Kennedy of Lincoln, Nebraska playing in his first tournament following his own 18-month layoff, was the victor of that deuce-in-the-third game during semifinal action. Mark had Insook breathing heavily at the end of that game, but she was hardly short of breath after eliminating him at eight-in-the-fourth. More memorable about Mark's play was his coutside comment early in the match. Frustrated with his inability to cope with Insook's ever-changing spin, he matter-of-factly stated, "This is no fun at all." Mark had advanced to the semi's after a tough five-game win over Lisa Gee in the quarters.
Insook won the tournament but Diana Gee was the star. After eliminating Todd Petersen in straight games during the quarters, Diana knocked out Colorado's second highest rated player, chopper Bohdan Dawidowicz. Diana's patient play and careful shot selection was the key to her victory. Unable to overpower him, Diana relied on consistency and altering the pace of her attck, delibarately moving Bohdan in and out. She also pushed a lot, confident that she could counter Bohdan's pick hits. It was a perfect game plan, executed almost perfectly, and despite Bohdan's attempts to frustrate her by lobbing (she's weakest against lobs), Diana defeated him at 19 in the fourth.
Diana drew encouragement from a partisan crowd that was cheering for every point, or more accurately, rooting against Bohdan. It was her Colorado Springs resident athlete buddies who were taunting Bohdan, as they had done when Gene Lonnon played him in the quarters. Bohdan, who's not shy about playing to the audience, accepted the role of "bad guy" and cheered himself on during his four-game defeat of Gene and the spectators. Last laugh to the fans, however.
This third annual Colorado Springs Open was the largest ever (103 players), the strongest (16 over 1900), and the smoothest run, due to a time schedule that was accurate to the minute every round. In terms of playing conditions, it's the best tournament in the country, but that's not very remarkable given the Olympic Training Center's Sports Center venue and the equipment resources of the USTTA itself. The lack of significant prize money ($700 total) didn't affect the entries but with athletes in residence and a coaching camp in progress, the tournament benefitted from 24 "captive" players before the entry blank was even printed. Still, there are now four clubs in Colorado Springs when there used to be one, and the Colorado USTTA membership has more than doubled in the last year (242 vs. 100). Grass roots development fueled by advantages inherent to USTTA headquarters in Colorado Springs, will undoubtedly foster continued growth in the Association's administrative home state.
The Pikes Peak YMCA/USO Table Tennis Club, sponsor of the Colorado Springs Open, does not take its fortuitous situation lightly and has set the goal of establishing its major event as a showcase for competitive table tennis nationally.
OPEN SNGLS: Fnl: Insook Bhushan d. Diana Gee; SF: Bhushan d. Mark Kennedy; Gee d. Bohdan Dawidowicz
2000 SNGLS: Fnl: Jasmine Wang d. Len Hauer 17, 10, 19; SF: Wang d. Thavaj Ananthothai 16, -19, 18; Hauer d. Dana Jeffries 15, 13
B SNGLS: Fnl: Chi-Ming Chui d. Tim Eiles -19, -21, 17, 19, 19; SF:Chui d. Jim Lynum 15, 11; Eiles d. Dennis Driggs 18, -18, 19
C SNGLS: Fnl: Toni Gresham d. Jonathan Levine 13, 18, 14; SF: Gresham d. Dave Libby -24, 17, 19; Levine d. Bruce MacLaine 19, -19, 11
D SNGLS: Fnl: Li Ai d. Norm Silver 13, 19, 15; SF: Ai d. Becky Martin 19, -21, 11; Silver d. Bob Jackson 17, 8
E SNGLS: Fnl: Ed Warwick d. Ben Brahim Soufen 22, 11, 13; SF: Warwick d. Nam Suk Frazier -25, 17, 11; Ben Brahim d. Lee Rodriguez -23, 19, 18
1850 WOMEN'S SNGLS: Fnl: Toni Gresham d. Frazier 9, -16, -21, 17, 14; SF: Gresham d. Becky Martin 12, 14; Frazier d. Li Ai 23, 19
Boys 17-U SNGLS: Fnl: Elliott Driggs d. David Driggs 16, 15, -20, 16; SF: E. Driggs d. Jason Neve -19, 21, 20; D. Driggs d. Ted Eiles 19, -16, 20
Boys 15-U SNGLS: Fnl: D. Driggs d. Neve 15, -6, 19, -16, 14; SF: D. Driggs d. Richard Mills 17, 13; Neve d. Elliott Driggs 19, -15, 19
Girls 17-U RR SNGLS: 1. Becky Martin 3-0; 2. Joanne Mullen 2-1; 3. Kathy Conway 1-2; 4. Tami Woodward 0-3
Girls 15-U RR SNGLS: 1. Joanne Mullen 2-0; 2. Kathy Conway 1-1; 3. Tami Woodward 0-2
SENIOR SNGLS: Fnl: Dana Jeffries d. Tom Miller 19, 19, 20; SF: Jeffries d. Len Hauer 10, 16; Miller d. Norm Silver 14, 16
OPEN DBLS: Fnl: Mark Kennedy/Todd Petersen d. Gene Lonnon/David Chun 15, 5; SF: Kennedy/Petersen d. Jasmine Wang/Vicky Wong 15, 16; Lonnon/Chun d. Dennis Gresham/Gary Gurtiza
MXD DBLS: Fnl: David Chun/D. Gee d. Gene Lonnon/L. Gee 14, -17, 19; Chun/Gee d. Chi-Ming Chui/Jasmine Wang 13, 19; Lonnon/Gee d. Tom Wintrich/Vicky Wong 17, 18
1800 DBLS: Fnl: D. Gresham/Roady d. Paul Lykke/Jim Lynum 15, 22; SF: Gresham/Roady d. Silver/Mark Zochowski; Lykke/Lynum d. Randy Kiser/Nik Shah
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